Yu-gi-oh! Til Death Do Us Duel
by Cheyguy1211
Summary: Sometimes, dueling really is about life and death. What happens when your world is shifted and all you can do is survive? You put your life into your cards and hope for the best. Decided to put a little horror spin on my traditional Yu-gi-oh story. Imagine Duelist Kingdom meets Nine Hours Nine Persons Nine Doors (which is pretty much where I got the idea from.)
1. Chapter 1: The Beginning

"And now beginning the last duel of the semi-finals!" shouted the announcer. "Contestant number 5: Lee versus Contestant number 16: Cheyenne!"

I was the latter of the announced names, and no, even though my name suggests it, I am not a girl. The winner of this duel will have to face Rallon in the final round. Rallon is considered to be a dueling genius, and defeating him will be no easy feat. For now, however, I need to defeat Lee.

We both walked up to the arena. His eyes were calm, as if he already knew he were going to win.

"Good Luck," he said calmly.

"You too," I said back.

We both took our positions. I had lost the coin toss beforehand so he would make the first move. We strapped on our duel disks and before either of us could think we both shouted "DUEL!"

(

Duel rules:

4000 lifepoints

Start with 5 cards

6 card max hand size

Cards that inflict direct damage on the player (Hinotama) are forbidden.

*Quick note #1: Whenever a character says they set a card, they are referring to spells/traps. They will explicitly state "monster" if they are going to set one. This is to help avoid confusion.*

*Quick note #2: When a monster is summoned or shown, it's stats will be shown next to it like this: (1000/2000) The first number represents attack points while the second represents defense points. Other information such as Effect, Type or Attribute will be left out until needed, and then it will be explained thoroughly.*

)

"I go first," he said, drawing his first card. "I set a monster facedown and I'll also set two cards facedown. Turn over.

"I draw. Hmmm. I summon Gagagigo (1850/1000) in attack mode. I use him to attack your facedown monster!" Gagagigo destroyed his face down Battle Warrior (700/1000). "I'll also set two cards face down. That's it for my turn."

"My turn. I summon Ape Fighter (1900/1200). I'll use him to attack your Gagagigo!"

"Not so fast, Lee. I activate my facedown trap, Memory of an Adversary. By taking damage equal to your monsters attack, I can not only stop the attack, but I can banish your monster and special summon it to my field at the end of your next turn."

"You're the one that needs to slow down. I activate Corkscrew Counter. When you activate a card/effect during the battle phase, I get to negate and destroy it, and deal 500 points of damage to you."

"What!?"

"And thanks to that, my attack still goes through." Ape Fighter destroys Gagagigo.

Lifepoints: Cheyenne:3450 vs Lee:4000

"It's not over yet." Lee said. "After my Ape Fighter destroys a monster by battle, it gains 300 attack points. However, if it fails to attack next turn, the boost will disappear."

This isn't looking good. With only one monster in my hand, I'll be wide open next turn. "I summon Rockstone Warrior (1800/1600) in attack mode. I set three cards facedown and I end my turn."

"Come on, Cheyenne, you're making this too easy for me. I summon Indomitable Fighter Lei Lei (2300/0) in attack mode. Next I'll activate the magic card Double Summon, which lets me normal summon another monster. I choose Protective Soul Ailin (0/0)."

0 attack points? Obviously that thing has some sort of ability. But at least Lei Lei switches to defense mode after it attacks. That way I can destroy it with almost any monster that I might draw next turn.

"I use Ailin's special ability to equip him onto Indomitable Fighter Lei Lei. Now, I can manually switch Lei Lei back to attack mode after it's forced to switch to defense mode."

...crap.

"Now, Ape Fighter, attack his Rockstone Warrior!"

"I tribute my Rockstone Warrior to activate my trap card Chaos Burst. This card lets me destroy your attacking monster and inflict 1000 points of damage to you."

"Too easy. I activate my trap Seven Tools of the Bandit. By paying 1000 lifepoints, I can negate your trap and destroy it. And thanks to your failure, you have no monsters on your side of the field while I get to replay my attack. Ape Fighter, finish what you started, except this time attack Cheyenne directly!

"Aaaaaaaghh!"

Lifepoints: Cheyenne:1250 vs Lee:3000

"At this moment, I activate my trap Flashbang!" I exclaimed.

"Another trap!?"

"After an opponent's monster has made a direct attack, I can use this to automatically end your turn. Sorry Lee, but it's not over yet."

"Humph. You're better than I expected, but that doesn't mean you can turn this around."

"We'll see about that. I bet this duel on my next card. Draw!..I activate Cup of Ace. I flip a coin and if the result is Heads, then I get to draw two cards. However, if the result is Tails, then-"

"Then I draw two cards and you lose your chance of winning." Lee interrupted.

I hated to admit it, but he was right. I have two of the pieces needed to win this duel, but I just need one more. The duel was on this toss. All I know is...Luck is for those who believe

The holographic coin sprung into the air. It seemed to stay up there forever and truthfully, I wanted it to. As it spun, I looked over at Lee and I could see his eagerness for the outcome. To him, the duel was already over. But to me, it had only just begun.

Heads!


	2. Chapter 2: The Power of a Genius

"No way!" Lee sulked.

"Now I draw two new cards." With the cards I had, I knew I could end the duel this turn. However, one more piece of the puzzle was missing. "I activate Miracle Rupture. By sending one Rock-type monster from my deck to the graveyard, I get to draw 1 card; and the card I'm sending is Revival Golem. When he's sent from my deck to the graveyard, I get to either add him to my hand or special summon him, and I choose the latter. Go, Revival Golem (100/2100), in defense position. And now I draw 1 card."

"Seems to me like you're still just stalling for time." Lee mocked.

He might have been right, if it weren't for the card I had just drawn. "You are wrong, Lee, I'm done being on the defensive. This turn I'll finish this. I activate Monster Reborn, letting me special summon a monster from any of our graves onto my side of the field. I choose my Gagagigo (1850/1000). And now, I sacrifice both my monsters to summon Gandora The Dragon of Destruction (0/0)!"

"0 attack point and defense points!?"

"Not for long. I activate his effect to destroy and banish all cards on the field except for himself, and he gains 300 atk for every card banished. There are 5 cards on the field, so he will gain 1500 atk."

"Such a powerful card. Tch. You still can't end the duel this turn. I have 3000 lifepoints"

"I disagree. I banish my Rockstone Warrior from my graveyard to special summon The Rock Spirit (1700/1000) in attack mode. Go, my monsters...ATTACK!" I yelled.

"Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!"

Final Lifepoints: Cheyenne:1250 vs Lee:0

"What a turn-around! We have a winner: Cheyenne!" shouted the announcer.

"You beat me this time, Cheyenne, but next time I'll be sure to be the victor," Lee said

"I look forward to our rematch," I replied.

We parted ways off the arena. I looked over my deck again making sure everything was ok. Something tells me I won't be able to win with Gandora again…

Suddenly, a strong gust of wind overtook the area; it was a helicopter. As it landed, I could recognize one of the people inside it. His name was Braxton. Braxton was the current champion of Duel Monsters. No one really knows how strong he is, no one except for the people in his group: The Eternals. To duel him, you must defeat the other 4 members in his group, but no one has ever made it past the first duelist: Brom. Unfortunately, Brom is succumbing to an unknown illness and it is said they he may die very soon. Wanting to go out with style, Brom decided to host a tournament, (not this one) giving the victor a chance to join The Eternals. Perennial Crusade was the name of it that tournament. For Braxton to be here must mean that someone from this tournament is definitely going to be in the Perennial Crusade. You see, only the best duelists will be invited to it, so winning here would definitely clinch a spot in that tournament, especially by defeating Rallon, who has been garnering quite a lot of attention for his dueling skills.

Rallon and I both walked up to the arena. He had a cold, condescending look in his eyes. I'd bet money on him not accepting a handshake if I were to offer one..

"Good luck," I said.

"It'll be faster if you just surrender," he said, haughtily.

"Sorry, not gonna happen. You'd probably make a lot of people happy if you surrendered though. No one likes to see bad dueling." I replied.

"Humph."

We engaged our duel disks and shouted "Duel!"

Lifepoints: Cheyenne:4000 vs Rallon:4000

"I'll go first," I said.

"Be my guest."

"I summon Master of the Flaming Dragonswords (1800/1200) in attack mode. I'll also set two cards face down and that ends my turn," I said.

"My turn. I summon Jinzo - Returner (600/1400) in attack mode. He has the ability to attack you directly, and that's exactly what I'll do."

"Oh-no. Gahhhh!" I shouted.

Lifepoints: Cheyenne:3400 vs Rallon:4000

"I'll set one card facedown and end my turn."

Damn. I let him get the first damage in. "My move. To leave that monster in attack mode and then set a facedown definitely means that's a trap you set." I said

"Good to see your brain is functioning. Are you going to attack or what?"

"Well of course. Master of the Flaming Dragonswords, attack his Jinzo - Returner!"

"Trap activate! Zero Gravity! This card switches the battle positions of all face-up monsters on the field. Now you can't attack."

"Grr. I set one more card and I end my turn."

"This duel is too easy. I activate Cost Down. By discarding one card in my hand, I can reduce the levels of all the monsters in my hand by 2. Now I summon Jinzo (Temporary Level 4) (2400/1500) in attack mode. Go Jinzo: Trap Search!" Jinzo's eyes lit up, then shot laser a laser at all of my traps, destroying all 3 of them. "Jinzo negates and destroys any traps on the field, and now you're defenseless...well almost. Jinzo attack!"

And just like that my monster was taken down. In one turn I've lost 4 cards...and it's not over yet.

"Direct Attack!"

Lifepoints: Cheyenne:2800 vs Rallon:4000

"Tch. My turn. I activate Pot of Greed, which lets me draw 2 cards from my deck." Hmm I have an idea. "I summon Celtic Guardian (1400/1200) in attack mode. Attack his Jinzo - Returner!"

"I activate my quick-play spell card, Enemy Controller, which lets me target one monster you control and change its battle position." My Celtic Guardian lowered his sword and switched into a defensive stance.

"I set one card facedown and end my turn." I said.

"My turn. I summon Mad Archfiend (1800/0) in attack mode and I'll use him to attack your Celtic Guardian."

"I activate my own quick-play spell, Half-Shut. This card halves my monster's attack, but now it can't be destroyed in battle. Looks like I'm safe, huh?" I laughed.

"Not necessarily. My Mad Archfiend inflicts piercing damage," he answered.

"What!?"

"And I still can bypass your Guardian and attack you with my Jinzo - Returner."

Lifepoints: Cheyenne:1600 vs Rallon:4000

Damn. I still haven't inflicted a single point of damage. I can't lose here!

"Now, I activate Amplifier and equip it onto my Jinzo. Now, Jinzo's effect does not affect my own traps. I'll set one card facedown and end my turn," he finished.

"I draw." Perfect! "I activate The Strongest Shield. With this, my Celtic Guardian gains attack equal to his defense when in attack mode, and defense equal to his attack when in defense mode. Changing his battle position won't help you much now!" Celtic Guardian (2600/1200) "Attack his Jinzo!"

"Trap, activate, Changing Destiny! When you declare an attack, this card lets me negate that attack and then you choose to either gain or deal to me the half the attack of the monster whose attack was negated."

"Hmmm. I choose… to gain the 1300," I said, "and that's it for my turn."

Lifepoints: Cheyenne:2900 vs Rallon:4000

"My turn." He seemed disappointed with his newly drawn card. "I switch my monsters to defense mode and end my turn."

Finally, I can take control again...if I ever even had it in the first place… "I draw! I summon Koa'ki Meiru Bergzak (2000/200) in attack mode and I use him to attack your Mad Archfiend. Now his special ability kicks in; when he destroys a monster by battle, he can attack again. Go Bergzak, attack his Jinzo - Returner as well!" It felt nice to finally take that pesky thing down. "Celtic Guardian, take out Jinzo!" All of his monsters were destroyed. "I set two cards facedown and end my turn. Since I do not have a Warrior-type monster in my hand to reveal, my Bergzak destroys itself."

"My turn. I activate my own Pot of Greed, letting me draw 2 cards. Next I activate Graceful Charity letting me draw three cards and then discard two from my hand."

"No way. Two of the most powerful draw cards back to back?"

"Don't even try it. I saw the way you defeated Lee, or should I say the way luck defeated Lee."

"What are you trying to say!?" I said angrily.

"You are not a strong duelist at all. How you made it to the finals is incomprehensible to me."

"Who are you to judge who is and who isn't a good duelist?"

"I'm a genius. My strategies are a million years ahead of yours and that's why I'm not only going to win this duel, but I'm going to become the next member of the Eternals."

"There's no way someone like you could become one of them." I said.

"Jealous because I'm better than you? If you don't think I can make it, then defeat me. Prove me wrong! You say it wasn't luck but skill so prove it!"

"I'll do just that."

"I'd love to see it. You still haven't dealt a single point of damage."

It sucks that he's right about that…

"I activate Monster Reborn to bring back -"

Please don't say Jinzo...

"- Airknight Parshath (1900/1600) in attack mode."

"I never destroyed a-"

"I discarded it with Graceful Charity," he interrupted. "And now I activate Forbidden Lance. This card lowers your monster's attack by 800, and now it's unaffected by other spells and traps."

"Wait, so that means…"

"Yep, he loses the bonus from The Strongest Shield." Celtic Guardian (600/1200) "Airknight Parshath, attack his monster!"

Lifepoints: Cheyenne:1600 vs Rallon:4000

"When my Airknight Parshath destroys a monster by battle, I get to draw one card. I set that card facedown and end my turn."

"My move." A level 8 monster!? I can't summon it in this situation. But maybe, if I can draw the last needed card, I can turn this duel around. "I end my turn."

"Hahaha seems like you've thrown in the towel. I can't blame you either. Must be scary knowing you'll be a failure forever. Airknight Parshath, end this duel!"

"Not so fast! I activate Emergency Provisions! By sending my other facedown card to the grave, I gain 1000 lifepoints."

"Damn it. Well that doesn't stop my attack!

Lifepoints: Cheyenne:700 vs Rallon:4000

"My turn! I activate Miracle Rupture, letting me send one Rock-type monster from my deck to my grave and then letting me draw one card. I choose Revival Golem (100/2100) , and thanks to his special ability, I can special summon him to my field in defense mode. I set one more card and that ends my turn."

"Draw. Humph, I end my turn."

"My turn. I end my turn again."

"Draw. Same here."

"My turn. Here we go! I sacrifice my Revival Golem to summon Giga Gagagigo (2450/1500) in attack mode. Go, attack his Airknight Parshath!"

Lifepoints: Cheyenne:700 vs Rallon:3450

"Ha! Looks like you aren't gonna end this duel perfectly like you thought."

"Just a scratch. You're still just a loser. Too weak to beat me."

"Tch. I end my turn."

"My turn. I summon Sorcerer of the Doomed (1450/1200) in attack mode and activate Creature Swap. Now we both have to give up a monster we control, and it shouldn't be that hard to decide." My Giga Gagagigo appeared on his side of the field, while his Sorcerer walked over to mine. "Now, Giga Gagagigo, attack that doomed Sorcerer and end this duel!"

"I activate my trap card, Miracle Locus! It lets my monster gain 1000 attack points, but unfortunately you get to draw one card." Sorcerer of the Doomed (2450/1200) Both of our monsters were equal in strength and took each other out, leaving us both with no monsters on the field.

"I'll set one card and end my turn."

"My move. I activate Cup of Ace! I'll flip a coin and-"

"Heads you draw, Tails I do. Get on with it."

"Humph fine." The coin flipped. Both of our fields were wide open. Drawing these two cards could mean the difference between victory and defeat, and I knew I couldn't let this guy win.

Tails!

"Wha?"

"Hahaha seems like your precious Lady Luck prefers me. Thanks for the cards."

"...I end my turn." One monster and it's over.

"My turn. Seems you still are lucky. I have no monsters to summon. I set one card and end my turn."

Phew that was close. But he has three facedown cards. Should I risk making a big move? "I draw! I activate One Day of Peace. We both draw 1 card, and no one takes any battle damage until the end of your next turn. I end my turn."

"Stalling isn't going to get you anywhere. you're still going to lose," he said

"Not to you, that's for sure."

"I summon Infinity Dark (1500/1200) in attack mode. He has no effects...for now. I end my turn."

"Draw!" It's here! Now's my chance to attack. "Looks like I won't be seeing that effect. I activate the Ritual Spell card End of the World. By tributing the level 8 Gogiga Gagagigo in my hand, I can Ritual Summon the level 8 Ruin, Queen of Oblivion (2300/2000) in attack mode. After destroying a monster in battle she can attack again. I use her to attack your Infinity Dark!"

"I activate my facedown Forbidden Chalice. It increases a monster's attack by 400 points, but negates it's effects. I use it on your Ruin. Now she can't attack again this turn."

Damn it. But now I can save my spells for later. I'll set them just in case. "I end my turn."

Lifepoints: Cheyenne:700 vs Rallon:2250

"My turn… Looks like this duel is over for you. I've finally drawn the final monster needed to summon your defeat. I activate Polymerization, fusing the 3 Satellite Cannons in my hand to form Satellite Laser Balsam (0/2000) in attack mode."

"0 attack!?"

"Not for long. Every end phase, my Satellite will gain 3000 attack points. And to make things even better, he has the piercing damage ability. However, if I attack, his attack goes back to normal." 3000!? If I can't stop it next turn, then there's not gonna be much of a chance left. "I set one card facedown and end my turn," he finished.

"I draw. This is it, Rallon. This is the final turn."

'Oh are you about to surrender?" he mocked.

"You wish. I attack your Satellite Cannon Balsam with my Ruin, Queen of Oblivion!"

"What are you thinking!? You must have given up."

"Never! I activate Ego Boost, increasing my monster's attack by 1000 points!" I shouted.

"Nice try. I activate my own Ego Boost, raising my own monster's attack by 1000 as well. Looks like you still lose."

"Like I'd lose to you! I activate my second Ego Boost! Now my Ruin has 4300 attack points, 300 more than your Satellite; and after it destroys your monster by battle it can attack again. Go, Ruin! Take out his monster!"

"Oh-no!" he panicked.

Both of our monsters got ready to attack. My monster drew her weapon and his monster charged it's laser. They struck at the same time, creating a huge cloud of smoke. Neither Rallon nor I could see a thing. Luckily for me, however, when the smoke cleared, I would be declared the winner.

As the smoke cleared, I noticed something. Something that wasn't there before. It was… it was...a trap card!

"I see you've noticed it. I activated my trap card Vanity's Call. It's a powerful card that can only be activated as the 4th or higher card in a chain. At the cost of half my lifepoints, it negates all other cards in the chain and destroys them."

"What! Which means…"

"Which means our monsters fought with their original attacks. And if I know my math, which of course I do, 3000 minus 2300 is 700. How unfortunate for you," he gloated.

Lifepoints: Cheyenne:0 vs Rallon:1125

I lost...to someone like him. Damn it! Maybe it was...just luck. I dropped to my knees, head hanging in shame. How could I lose...to this guy.

"I hope you've realized how weak you are. You can never defeat me, that's a fact. Now go home and watch as I become the next member of The Eternals. Muahahahahahaha"

Rallon turned and walked off the arena, accepting his prizes on the way out. He won this tournament, and now he gets the chance of a lifetime. I may have gotten second place, but it feels like last. I turn and see Braxton with a slight smile on his face, perhaps pleased that the genius can live up to his nickname. I accepted my consolation prize, a couple of booster packs and a rare card, but I was just ready to leave, and so I did.


	3. Chapter 3: Death's Invitation

2 weeks later

64 people. 64 participants. 64 challengers. 64 duelists. There are 64 duelists competing in the Perennial Crusade. As of today, I am one of them.

I received the invitation in the mail. It wasn't anything fancy, just a letter describing that this journey will "change" me. The tournament will take place on the Cylz Islands. I've never heard of them before, but the letter describes them as one huge island surrounded by very small pieces of land. Didn't really matter to me. The letter also told me not to bring my duel disk, as one would be provided to me at the island. Other than that, the letter was pretty standard. In exactly 1 week from now, I'll be riding on a plane to the Cylz Islands.

My plane only had 13 people on it, one of which was Rallon. This tournament is gathering people from all over the place, so different planes were sent to different regions to pick up different people. The ride was a quiet one, and by the time I even realized it, we were already there. The island was enormous. In the center lay a castle. it was a really weird sight to see. In fact, it kinda reminded me of something… oh yeah, Duelist-

"Will all duelists please come this way! I repeat- will all duelists please come this way!" It was Brom. It was extremely apparent that he did not have too much time left. We followed him to an open area not too far from the water. "While we are awaiting the arrival of the last plane, I'd like to take this time to give you your new duel disks," he said. After receiving mine, I decided to inspect it a little. It seemed normal for the most part, except there was one difference compared to a normal one. On the leftmost part of the duel disk, in the white open space, are 8 lights. Only 1 of them, however, is lit. I placed it on my arm. Felt natural.

After about 10 minutes the last plane arrived. They received their duel disks just as we did, and after that, things took a dark turn.

"Welcome, ladies and gentlemen, the Perennial Crusade!" Brom began. You could feel the excitement in the air. "Here are the rules, and pay attention, as the consequences for breaking these rules are quite high." He began to cough. I couldn't help but wonder how much time he had left. "As you may have noticed, there are 8 lights on the left of your duel disk. Those are called your Life Counter, and they represent your life on this island. Think of them as poker chips. You wager them before you duel, and once you collect 8 you will be allowed to enter the Finals. There are 64 of you, so only 8 of you will be able to move on. Here's the important part. Inside your duel disk is a small syringe filled with poison. If all your lights go out, you will be injected with the poison… and you will die."

I couldn't tell whether he was joking or not, but if he was, it was the sickest joke I've ever heard. Terrified faces littered the rest of us, and most people tried to remove their duel disks, to no avail. "It's stuck!" "I can't get it off!" "Help me!"

"As you can tell, you cannot remove your duel disks. No matter how hard you try, you will not be able to. They will only come off once you get off this island. I wouldn't recommend forcing it either, as you may trigger the poison. Also, don't think about skipping your duels either. In 3 days, this island will sink, and everyone on it will die, including me. Now I know what you're thinking, why am I dueling this. That's easy. Life isn't fair. That's why. Why did I have to get stuck with this disease? WHY!? If I'm going to suffer, so will all of you, and we can die together. Hahahahhaha!

"You sick bastard!" "What the fuck!" "Get me outta here!"

"Also, if you do happen to die by means other than dueling, then your remaining Life Counters will be distributed randomly to other people. I recommend just winning your duels. Oh, and to show you I'm serious, I've rigged 2 random duel disks. They will explode in exactly 1 hour unless their Life Counter reaches 2. Now let's see to whom duel disks they belong to…"

BEEP! BEEP! BEEP!

It was loud.

BEEP! BEEP! BEEP!

It was near.

BEEP! BEEP! BEEP!

It was mine.


End file.
